N.A.U. SCHOOL OF FORESTRY

Cactus Wren

Young wrens are usually fed deep inside the nest which normally offers high walled protection from elements and predators, but to give the viewer a "peep show," artist Larry Toschik portrays a delightful moment as the young press mama for a decision as to who gets the grub.

Few people have observed a meeting between a rattlesnake and a Roadrunner, but Willis Peterson did and photographed the following encounter. The Roadrunner initiates the attack by circling the snake at a safe enough distance to insure not being bitten. This circling behavior, along with an occasional feint by the Roadrunner, may last 15 to 20 minutes or until between conditioning and tiring, the snake begins to pay the bird no heed. On seeing this, the Roadrunner dashes to the snake and slashes the victim's head with its powerful mandibles. It then quickly grasps the stunned snake by or behind the head and slams the head area to the ground numerous times to finish the chore. The Roadrunner does not kill for pleasure, but for survival, and this small rattler will be consumed head first should the meal be too long, the bird will take refuge under a bush to digest the head end as the tail slowly disappears toward the mouth.

The fable about the Roadrunner building a cactus corral around a sleeping rattlesnake continues to appear in books. The Roadrunner may consume a small rattler, but it has no way of consuming a large snake once it is dead. The bird's feet are too weak for powerful grasping and its bill is not capable of shearing. Agility, speed, and balance give this bird the necessary "racer's edge" to make it a successful desert carnivore.